Easts boring machine



B. N. WEBER EARTH BORING MACHINE March 3, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FiledNOV. 9, 1959 www MM N 4 m, MM

March 3, 1964 B. N. WEBER EARTH BORING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FiledNov. 9, 1959 llwllyi 5J www NWI F1: LLTO i 6 Erk QW L mW uw NW AN Q GW,NW

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3,123,161 EARTH BRTNG MACLP n, Bertrand N. Weber, Green isle, Minn.Filed Nov. 9, 1959, Ser. No. $51,681 2 Claims. (Cl. 17E-lilo) Thisinvention relates to an apparatus for boring a hole in the earth inwhich a tile type conduit is placed.

An object of this invention is to provide a novel apparatus, of simpleand inexpensive construction, for readily boring a hole in the earth inwhich a large tile type conduit is placed.

Another object of this invention is to provide a power driven apparatusfor readily boring a hole in the earth in which a tile type conduit isplaced and arranged and constructed to be mounted on the tile in amanner to leave substantially the entire inside of the tile free of theapparatus to thereby permit workmen to work within the interior of thetile.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a novel rotaryboring apparatus arranged and constructed to be mounted adjacent thefront end of a tile type conduit and serving to bore a hole in the earthsubstantially the same size as the tile to thereby permit the tile to beplaced therein whereby grouting is obviated.

Another object of this invention is to provide an earth boring apparatushaving a rotary cutting head for boring a hole in the earth in which alarge tile type conduit is placed and including a conveyor mechanismcooperating with the cutting head for continuously conveying loosenedearth outwardly of the tile.

A more specilic object of this invention is to provide a power operatedconveyor device including a plurality of reciprocating conveyor elementsarranged and constructed to progressively and continuously conveymaterial in a predetermined direction.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will more fullyappear from the following description, made in connection with theaccompanying drawings, wherein like reference characters refer to thesame or similar parts throughout the several views, and in which:

FIG. l is a longitudinal vertical section or a pair of tiles positionedin a hole in the earth with the novel earth Working apparatus shownpartly in side elevation and partly in section;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged end elevational View of the cutting head shown atthe right side of FlG. l;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view taken on line 3 3 of FIG. 2; and

FlG. 4 is a horizontal longitudinal section of a tile showing the topplan view of a portion of the conveyor device.

Referring now to the drawing and specically to FlG. l, one embodiment orthe novel earth working apparatus, generally designated as il?, is shownmounted within the forwardmost of a pair of tiles T which have beenpositioned within a hole H. lt is to be understood that the term tile isintended to include the large conduits or pipes formed of tile, metal orother material and which are commonly used as water conduits beneathroadbeds or the like.

The novel earth boring apparatus it) includes a rotary cutting head inthe form of a cog wheel 1l which as seen in PEG. 2 is comprised of apair of semi-circular segments 12 detachably secured together and eachhaving a peripheral ilange 13 extending outwardly therefrom. Each of thesegments 12 is also provided with a plurality of openings 14 arrangedaround the periphery thereby to dene a plurality of cogs or teeth 15.

Cog wheel 11 is provided with a hub lo which includes a sleeve 17 havingan annular frange 18a extending radi- Qltts tt ally from the front endthereof and having an annular flange 13b extending radially from therear end thereof. A plurality of spiders or spokes 19 are secured tofront ilange a of hub lo and extend radially outwardly therefrom and aresecured to a peripheral llange 13 or cog wheel 1l. lt will be seen thattwo of the spokes i9 have an arcuate member 2li secured transverselythereof as by welding. Arcuate members Ztl are detachably secured to theange 13 by bolts 2l and serve to hold the ends oi the semi-circularsegments 12 in abutting relation. 4

Spokes 19 extend radially outwardly beyond the outer edge of I'lange i3and are provided with digging elements or teeth 22 at the outer endsthereof and which extend axially forwardly ofthe cog wheel 11 as bestseen in FEGS. 2 and 3. Cog wheel il is also provided with a plurality ofdigging teeth 23 which, as seen in FIG. 2, are arranged at varyingdistances from the axis of the cog wheel.

Referring now to FIG. 2, it will be seen that when cog wheel 11 isrotated, teeth 22 dene a circle having a diameter only slightly largerthan the diameter of tile T. Thus teeth 2?. and 23 cooperates to bore ahole only slightly larger than the size of tile T. Cog wheel il is alsoprovided with a pair or paddle members Zit each being secured to thespoke i9 and arranged in radially opposed relation with respect to eachother. It will be noted that each of paddle members 24 extend obliquelyto the rear of the face of the cog wheel. Paddle members 24 function todirect earth rearwardly into the tile which, of course, facilitates theboring operation. lt should also be noted that the unique detachableconstruction of the semicircular segments l2 permit the cutting head orcog wheel 11 to be radially disassembled when the cutting head engage anobstruction such as a rock or the like. The obstruction may be removedand the cutting head may be quickly re-assembled for operation thereof.

Hub i7 is rotatably mounted upon an elongated tubular member or pipe 25which as seen in FIG. 1 projects forwardly ol' the cog wheel il intopenetrating relation with the earth. A pair of mounting members 2e eachbeing of substantially channel-shaped cross sectional coni'igurationincludes a web portion 27 and a pair oi flanges 23 formed integrallytherewit i. lt will be seen that the outer ends of the web portion 27 ofeach oi the mounting members 25 have an arcuate plate Btl securedthereto and each of which is provided with threaded apertures formedtherein. These apertures in plates 3h receive bolts 3l which may betightened into engaffing relation with the inner circumferential surfaceof the tile T so that the elongate shaft 25 may be secured therein insubstantiady co-axial relation. lt should be noted that elongate shaftor pipe 25 not only serves as a mounting for the cog wheel but alsofunctions to guide the cutting head during the boring operation. ln someinstances, the elongate member '.25 may be forced completely through theportion of the earth in which a tunnel is to be made so that the courseor disposition of the hole to be bored may he predetermined.

It will be seen from FIGS. 2 and 3 that tile T is provided with anannular shoulder spaced inwardly from the leading edge thereof andagainst which the outer end portions of web 28 orp the front mountingmember 26 are disposed.

Power means are provided for rotating cog wheel l and include a pair ofdrive mechanisms 32, as best seen in FiGS. 2 and 3. Each of the drivemechanisms 3.?. include a hydraulic motor which is provided with ailexible inlet supply conduit 3aand a flexible outlet supply conduit 35which are each connected to a source of hydraulic power, not shown.Hydraulic motor 33 is provided with a drive shaft 36 having a pair ofuniversal joints 37 to permit the drive shaft 36 to be flexed. The

arsenal 3 flexible characteristic of drive shaft 36 facilitates mountingof the drive mechanism 32 driving relation with the cog wheel. A drivenelement or gear 3S is affixed to the outer free end of drive shaft 36and engages cogs le" of cog wheel i.

Each of the drive mechanisms 32 are provided with mounting means forreleasably clamping the drive mechanism against the upper innercircumferential surface of the tile T. Each of the mounting meansincludes an elongated mounting member or bar 39 having a bracket it?secured thereto adjacent its rear end portion and which is secured tothe housi g of hydraulic motor 33. Mountlng bar 3i? has a pair ofbearing sleeves dll secured thereto and which serve to supportintermediate portions of lexible drive shaft 36. A pair of hook elements42 are aixed to opposite edges of mounting bar 39 at the front endthereof and are disposed in substantially opposed parallel relation, asseen in FIGS. 2 and 3. Each of the mounting means also includes anelongated channelshaped supporting member d3 positioned upon the upperouter side ol tile T. The front end of support member 43 has a bracketi4 secured thereto as by welding and which is disposed just forwardly ofthe leading edge of tile T. A plate 4S is secured to bracket 44 by boltsi7 or the like and has a pin itl secured transversely thereof andextending laterally outwardly from the sides of the plate, as best seenin PEG. 2. Bracket 45 is provided with a pair of vertical slots throughwhich bolt 47 extends so that plate 43 may be adjusted vertically.

Fin 4S is releasably engaged by hook elements 42 so that mounting barmay be swung into abutting relation with the inner circumferential wallof tile T. A pair of bolts 9 each pass through registering aperturesformed in the mounting bar 39, support member 43 and tile T and aresecured in place by lock nuts l?.

When each of the drive mechanisms 32 are swung into abutting relationwith the inner circumferential surface o tile T and secured thereto inthe manner illustrated in FIG. 3, the gear 38 is positioned in engagingrelation with the cogs of cog wheel ll. By employing hydraulic motors asthe power means, a relatively small unit may be used which has arelatively large horsepower output during normal operation. This isespecially important when boring holes, for example, beneath road edsfor placing tile type conduits therein. Ordinarily during the boringoperation, workmen are required to be stationed within the tile at fivefoot intervals for shovelling the loosened earth outwardly through therear end of the tile. lt will therefore be seen that by employing thepair of hydraulic motor type drive mechanisms, a minimum amount of spaceis used and a better balanced driving efect on cog wheel lll isobtained. Referring now to FlG. l, it will be seen that the inlet andoutlet conduits supplying the hydraulic motors are the only parts of thedrive mechanism which are disposed within the rearmost of the tiles.

Referring now to FlG. l, it will be seen that means are provided forurging the tiles T inwardly of the hole H during the boring operation. Ahydraulic ram or jack 5l is positioned against a block B and includes apiston rod 52 having an enlarged head portion 53 afxed to its Outer end.The head portion 53 bears against another block C which is disposed inabutting relation with the rear edge of the rearmost tile T. Byextending piston rod 52 the tiles T are urged into tne hole l-l inend-to-end relation as the hole is being formed by the novel boringapparatus. Although not shown in the drawing, the llexible inlet andoutlet supply conduits 3- and 35 are provided with suitable couplingmeans to permit the conduits to be uncoupled when each successive tileis positioned for entry into the hole. This arrangement permits thedrive mechanism to remain intact in the forwardmost of the tiles T whenan additional tile is being positioned in place for entry into the holewhich, of course, results in a great saving of time and labor.

A conveyor device, generally designated S4, is also surfaces of tiles T.A stop element 58 is secured to theY underside of bottom wall 56adjacent one end thereof and is adapted to engage the leading edge ofthe tile for retaining conveyor channel 55 against rearward longitudinalmovement as best seen in FIG. 3.

A frame structure 59 is positioned upon the upper Y free edges of sidewalls 57 and is arranged for reciprocating movement in a fore and aftdirection relative thereto. Frame structure 59 is comprised of aplurality of frame members dll pivotally connected together and eachincluding a pair of laterally spaced longitudinally extending members 6linterconnected by a pair of transversely extending cross members 62. Theforward ends of each of the longitudinally extending members 6l arebifurcated as at 63 and receive therebetween the rear ends oflongitudinally extending members 6l of theV next adjacent frame member.A vertical pivot pin 64 secures the ends of the respective longitudinalmembers together in a tongue and groove type connection to therebypermit pivoting about a substantially vertical ax1s.

Each of the transverse members 62 is provided with a pair oftransversely spaced lugs 65' secured to the underside thereof. A conIeyor element or blade 66 is secured to the lugs 65 of each transversecross member 62 by means of pivot pins 67. It will be noted that theconveyor elements or blades 66 have arcuate shaped lower edges toconform to the arcuate shape of bottom wall 56. Referring now to FIG. 3,it will be seen that the upper portion of each of the conveyor elements6o defines a stop 68 which cooperates with cross member 62 for limitingpivotal movement of the conveyor element 66 in a forward direction orswinging movement toward the right side of FIG. 3. Conveyor elements 65may pivot about pin 67 in a fore and aft direction but are limited intheir forward swinging movement to the inclined position illustrated inFIG. 3.

Power means are provided for causing reciprocating movement of framestructure 59 and comprises a doubleacting hydraulic ram 69 havingcontrol means 69a and including a piston rod 7u pivotally connectedadjacent its ends to frame structure $9 as at 7l. Hydraulic ram 69 isremovably mounted on the rearmost of channels S5 and is provided, ofcourse, with an inlet supply conduit '72 and an outlet conduit '73 whichare connected to a source of hydraulic power. lt will be noted that therearmost channel SS is supported in inclined relation with respect tothe rearmost tile by a pair of cables 74 which have one of theirrespective ends detachably secured to the channel as at 75 and havetheir other end secured to the tile by an eye bolt 76. Extension andretraction of piston rod 7d imparts reciprocating movement to framestructure S9 in a fore and aft direction. As frame structure 59 movesrearwardly or to the left, as is seen in FlG. 3, the conveyor elements66 are maintained in their inclined position and will cause loosenedearth disposed within the conveyor channel S5 to be moved continuouslyand progressively toward the rear of the tile T. When the piston rod 7)of hydraulic ram 69 is extended, the frame structure 59 is caused tomove forwardly or to the right as seen in FIG. 3 and conveyor blades orelements 66 will pivot rearwardly or to the left about the transverseaxis when they encounter material disposed within their path. lt willtherefore be seen that during the boring operation, paddle members 24will direct the loosened earth into the tile T and into the conveyorchannel 5S so that the material will thereafter be conveyed rearwardlyand outwardly of the tiles by the conveyor elements 66. When it isdesirable to position another tile for entry into the hole, thehydraulic ram 69 is detached from the rearmost conveyor channel 55 andis also detached from frame structure 59. Cable means 74 are thendetached from the tile and from the rearrnost channel and the next tileis positioned in place for entry into the hole. With this arrangement,it will be seen that it is not necessary to retract the entire conveyingmechanism 54 from the tile when each successive tile is positioned forentry into the hole.

It will be seen from the foregoing description that my novel earthboring apparatus is arranged and constructed to bore a holesubstantially the same size or a large type conduit so that the tile maybe placed within the hole without the necessity of grouting. It willalso be noted from the preceding paragraphs that the drive mechanism fordriving the rotary cutting head is adapted to be uniquely mounted to thetile in a manner to require a minimum of space so that the interior ofthe tile is accessible to workmen for working therein.

One of the long existing problems associated with earth boring apparatusof the type described herein has een the time lost when the boringapparatus encounter an obstacle. It will be seen, however, that my novelearth boring apparatus includes a segmented cutting head which may bereadily disassembled when an obstacle is encountered to thereby permitthe removal of the obstacle. It will also be seen that l have provided aconveyor device cooperatively associated with the cutting head forprogressively and continuously conveying material outwardly of the tileconduits during the boring operation. Thus it will be seen that I haveprovided a novel earth boring apparatus which, because of its uniqueconstruction and operation, permits a great saving of time and labor.

It will, of course, be understood that various changes may be made inthe form, details, arrangement and proportions of the parts withoutdeparting from the scope f this invention which consists of the mattershown and described herein and set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1 Apparatus applicable to the leading front end of a pipe tile and forproducing a hole in the earth into which the tile is to be moved,

said apparatus including ya forwardly facing rotary cutter having acutting diameter substantially equalling the diameter of the tile to beplaced into the bored hole,

mechanism mounting and driving the cutter adjacent the front end of thetile and including an elongate rotary member driv-ab'ly connected to thecutter and extending rearwardly therefrom within the outer periphery ofthe cutter and applying driving torque to said cutter to revolve thelcutter against the earth `at Ka location limmediately adjacent thefront end of the tile, said mechanism ,also including a motor having aframe and also having an output shaft connected With and driving saidrotary member,

said mechanism also including :a tile engaging mount adapted to beapplied in xed posi-tion upon the tile, said mount having an earth andtile-engaging element spaced rearwardly from the cutter and disposedsubstantially at the outer periphery thereof, said element extendingrearwardly to lie along and flush against the outer periphery `off thetile in clamping relation therewith :to thereby be restrained by thetile and by the earth at the periphery of the bored hole from movingaround the rotation aX-is of the cutter, said `mount having meansretaining said element in xed position on the outer periphery of thetile,

said mechanism also including rigid means secured on said mount randrotatably -nrountinfr said rotary member and retaining said motor ytramein xed relation `on said mount to prevent rotation of the motor framewith respect to the tile l'and earth as the cutter is revolved,

whereby 'to produce a hole in the ear-th immediately in front of thetile to permit the tile to be moved thereinto.

2. The invention set forth in claim 1 wherein said earth andtile-engaging element of the amount also has earthengaging surfacesfacing transversely and circumferentially of the rotation axis :andcircumferentially of the tile, whereby to be obstructed fromcircumferential movement by the earth as the cutter engages the earth ina cutting action.

References Cited in the rile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS652,554 .Barker lune 26, 1900 879,822 Karns Feb. 18, 1908 1,927,625Baumann Sept. 19, 1933 2,381,185 Rogers etal. Aug. 7, 1945 2,552,743Simpson May 15, 1951 2,625,375 Hall Jan. 13, 1953 2,633,334 LavenderMar. 3l, 1953 2,688,465 Birdwell Sept. 7, 1954 2,835,472 Osborn May 20,1958 2,874,936 Gonzales Feb. 24, 1959 2,919,121 Ruth Dec. 29, 19592,946,567 Pepper T July 26, 196,()

1. APPARATUS APPLICABLE TO THE LEADING FRONT END OF A PIPE TILE AND FORPRODUCING A HOLE IN THE EARTH INTO WHICH THE TILE IS TO BE MOVED, SAIDAPPARATUS INCLUDING A FORWARDLY FACING ROTARY CUTTER HAVING A CUTTINGDIAMETER SUBSTANTIALLY EQUALLING THE DIAMETER OF THE TILE TO BE PLACEDINTO THE BORED HOLE. MECHANISM MOUNTING AND DRIVING THE CUTTER ADJACENTTHE FRONT END OF THE TILE AND INCLUDING AN ELONGATE ROTARY MEMBERDRIVABLY CONNECTED TO THE CUTTER AND EXTENDING REARWARDLY THEREFROMWITHIN THE OUTER PERIPHERY OF THE CUTTER AND APPLYING DRIVING TORQUE TOSAID CUTTER TO REVOLVE THE CUTTER AGAINST THE EARTH AT A LOCATIONIMMEDIATELY ADJACENT THE FRONT END OF THE TILE, SAID MECHANISM ALSOINCLUDING A MOTOR HAVING A FRAME AND ALSO HAVING AN OUTPUT SHAFTCONNECTED WITH AND DRIVING SAID ROTARY MEMBER.